Automatic brace locks for sectional scaffolding



July 1, 1958 A. c. BORGMAN ET AL 2,841,452

AUTOMATIC BRACE LOCKS FOR SECTIONAL SCAFFOLDING Filed Feb. 24. 1953 United States Patent lOfifice A 2,841,452 Patented July 1, 1958 AUTOMATIC BRACE LOCKS FOR SECTIONAL SCAFFOLDING Arthur C. Bergman, Franklin Square, and William B. Sheard, Pleasantville, N. Y., assignors to The Patent Scalfolding (30., Inc., Long Island City, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 24, 1953, Serial No. 338,296

1 Claim; (Cl. 304-40) This invention relates to automatic locks, preferably for use in sectional or fabricated steel scaffolding, and the object of the invention is to provide an improved lock for locking or retaining on a pin or post secured to a leg of the scaffold, the cross bars, runners or other attachments used in a fabricated scafiold frame.

The invention consists of two vertically aligned and spaced posts secured to a leg of a scaffold at about the place Where the ends of the usual crossbars are fastened, one of said posts having a reduced grinding portion for engaging a slot in a slotted slide piece, above which a handle is formed to manipulate the slide piece. This slot of the slide piece is closed at both ends to hold the slide piece to its post, and the slide piece is capable of sliding on said post from one end to the other of said slot. This slide piece has another slot having one closed and one open end, with the slide piece offset from the leg of the scaffold a greater distance than the distance of the slide piece at its upper post is from the leg. This lower end of the slide piece passes like a fork or yoke around part of the second post which acts as a brace holder. This second post has lateral cutouts, with bounding shoulders, preferably at both sides of the post for the grinding engagement of the open slotted portion end of the sliding piece.

When the slide piece is moved upwards to the extent of the length of the long upper slot, the lower open slot is above the brace post. This pennits the insertion of the braces on this brace post, the brace being usually provided with openings, to slip over the brace post. Then the slide piece is moved downwardly, so that its lower open slotted end embraces the brace post, and presses slightly against the brace to press it against the leg.

The invention will be further described, an embodiment shown in the drawings, and the invention will be finally pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a front view of an embodiment of this invention, the parts being shown in normally locked position;

Fig. 2 is a side view of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fiont view in unlocked position;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 55 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a perspective View of the guide post, and

Fig. 7 is a perspective of the brace post.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, the slide piece 10 consists of a piece of material with a closed slot 11, in the upper end portion 12 and an open-ended slot 13 in the lower end portion 14. This second slot 13 has its upper end closed and its lower end open and is therefore U or fork shaped and of shorter length than the upper slot portion 12, which has a handle portion 12a. Both slots have constant widths and have aligned axes. The slide piece 10 may or may not have an offset 10a in a direction perpendicular to long axes of the slide piece slots 11 and 13, and parallel to the short axes of the slide piece slots,

dependent on Whether a constant number or a varying number of braces, runners or other attachments are to be retained or locked.

This slide piece 10 is mounted upon the scaffold frame by means of a special guide post 15, which is fastened or attached directly to the scafiold frame by welding or the like. This guide post 15 has at one place along its length, an elongated or flattened or rectangular crosssectional cutout 16. The length of the cutout 16 is substantially equal to the thickness of the slide piece 10 in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the post 15. The longitudinal axis of the guide post is perpendicular to the axis of the frame leg 20 with the long axis of the rectangular portion cross-section of the post 15 parallel to the longitudinal axis of the legs 20 of the scaffold frame. The narrow shorter axis of the guide post out out 16 has substantially the same width as the upper slot 11 in the slide piece 10. The upper slot 11 in the slide piece 10 engages the sides of cutout 16 of the guide post 15 and slides thereon as the length of the slot 11 in the slide piece is longer than the dimensions of the longer axis of the cutout 16 of the guide post. The slide piece 10 is retained upon the rectangular cutout 16 of the post by means of a washer 17 and the head of the stud 15 is preferably upset by riveting as at 18. A nut, snap-ring, welding, cotter pin, straight or any other suitable means could be used.

A brace post 25 has a constant cross-section except at one section near the outer end which is either notched or grooved on the diametrically opposite sides or circumferentially grooved. This notch 26 is the locking groove. The width across the post from the bottom of the groove or notch on one side to bottom of the groove or notch on the other side is substantially the same as the narrow width of the U slot 13 in the lower end of the slide piece 10.

This brace post 25 is mounted upon the scaffold frame 20 directly below the guide post 15 and with its grooved surfaces 26 parallel to the axis of the leg 20, and in line with the long axes of the slots 11 and 13 in the slide piece 10 and in the same plane as slot 13 and directly on the projection of the edges of slot 13 parallel to the slide piece 10. The distance between the guide post 15 and brace post 25 is governed by the length of the slide piece 10 and length of slots 11 and 13 in the slide piece 10. The longitudinal axis of the brace post 15 is perpendicular to the axis of the leg 20 of the frame.

Both the guide post 15 and the brace post 25 may have a curved seat-portion 27, 28, respectively.

When the slide piece 10, guide post 15, and brace post 25 have been fabricated and assembled as previously described, the unit will operate in the following manner: In the closed or locked position, the slide piece 10 will be suspended from the guide post 15 and the post itself will bear against the upper end of the upper slot 11 in the slide piece 10. The brace post 25 will be located so that its top surface will bear against the closed end of the lower slot 13. The edges of the slot 13 in the direction of the material thickness parallel to the longitudinal axis of the brace post 25, will be rising in the grooves or notches 26 of the brace post 25. The lower end of the slide piece 10 is therefore prevented from moving in any direction by the lower slot 13 in the slide piece 10, and notches 26 of the brace post 25, except in an upward direction. The distance of movement is controlled by the length of the upper slot 11 in the slide piece 10 and the location of the guide post 15. The length of the slots in the slide piece and guide and brace post spacing are such that when the slide piece is raised all the way the lower end of the upper slot 11 in the slide piece 10 bears against the under surface of the guide post 15 that there is sufticient opening between the extreme lower end 36 "end of the brace post 25. j

of the slide piece and center line of the brace post 25 7 that a brace, runner,'or' other attachment used in con nection with fabricated scaifolding can be slipped on to this brace stud and moved past the locking grooyeiin this studQ Therefore, when thecjslide' picce'is released it will drop by gravity 'part or'all thewayclependent 'upon th'e number-of braces put upon brace post 25, or. :be f orced down by, a spring or other means, not shown, and the U slot or lower slot 13 in the slide piece 10 will again engage the locking grooves 26 in the brace post 25. The

braces 35 or other attachments will then be locked and secured from slipping or moving off the stud by the slide piece 1%! which comes between'the bracej35 and the free e The elongated cross-section of the guide post and the upperslot in the slide piece work together in suchman her that the slide piece will not rotate about the guide post 15,-but will move only in the direction parallel to the long, axis of the slot inthe slide piece, which is parallel to the axis of the frame leg. This lock secures the braces on the lower or brace post and locks automatically, provided the scaffold frame is held at or near its normal verticalposition.

We wish it to be understood that we do not desire'to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, for obvious modifications will occur to a person ,skilled in the art.

We claim:

In an automatic brace lock'for a scaffold, said scaffold having an upright, braces with holes in the proximity of extremities thereof, an upper bolt and a lower bolt, said bolts being in alignment and vertically spaced from one another and radially projecting from said uprighg each of said bolts having a pair of diametrically opposed vertical recesses laterally of and in the proximity of the outer ends thereof, said lower bolt being adapted to pro ject through said holes in said braces and support said braces between said recesses therein and said upright, the

combination of said bolts with a sliding'member supported by said upper bolt for vertically reciprocal movement transversely thereof, said sliding member having a pair of vertically spaced elongated slots, the first of said slots being closed at both ends and extending downwardly from the upper extremity of said sliding member, said sliding member includinga pair of'parallel vertical' walls laterally of said first slot reciprocally received in said vertical recesses in said upper bolt for vertically guiding said sliding member transversely of said upper bolt, the

length of said movement corresponding to the length of said firsttslot, the second of said slots being open at'its lower end and of a length substantially less than the length of said first slot, and said sliding member having a pair of vertical legs laterally of said second slot for reception in said recesses in said lower bolt when'said sliding member .descends'vertically and transversely of said upper bolt, said legs being above the extremities of braces supported by said lower bolt when said sliding member is moved upwardly substantially the full length i of said first slot, whereby braces supported by said lower bolt between saidrecesses therein and said upright may be removed therefrom. a v

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS French Aug. 10,1954 

